Georgia CommonsSB 38: Development Impact Fees; provide for education
Introduced version, the latest LegiScan holds · Last action January 29, 2025 · Introduced
The text as LegiScan holds it, read from the PDF the legislature publishes with its margin line numbers, running heads, and page footers removed. Line breaks are joined into paragraphs here; no word is changed.
Underlined words are what the bill adds to current law and struck-through words are what it removes, as the printed bill shows them.
Senate Bill 38
By: Senators Dolezal of the 27th, Still of the 48th and Anavitarte of the 31st
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Chapter 71 of Title 36 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to development impact fees, so as to provide for development impact fees for education; to provide for definitions; to provide for the manner of calculation, imposition, and collection of such fees; to provide for related matters; to provide for a contingent effective date and for automatic repeal; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Chapter 71 of Title 36 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to development impact fees, is amended by revising Code Section 36-71-1, relating to short title and legislative findings and intent, as follows:
"36-71-1.
(a) This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the 'Georgia Development Impact Fee Act.'
(b) The General Assembly finds that an equitable program for planning and financing public facilities needed to serve new growth and development is necessary in order to promote and accommodate orderly growth and development and to protect the public health, safety, and general welfare of the citizens of the State of Georgia. It is the intent of this chapter to:
(1) Ensure that adequate public facilities are available to serve new growth and development;
(2) Promote orderly growth and development by establishing uniform standards by which municipalities, and counties, and local school systems may require that new growth and development pay a proportionate share of the cost of new public facilities needed to serve new growth and development;
(3) Establish minimum standards for the adoption of development impact fee ordinances or resolutions by municipalities, and counties, and local school systems; and
(4) Ensure that new growth and development is required to pay no more than its proportionate share of the cost of public facilities needed to serve new growth and development and to prevent duplicate and ad hoc development exactions."
SECTION 2.
Said chapter is further amended by designating Code Sections 36-71-1 and 36-71-2 as Article 1, by designating Code Sections 36-71-3 through 36-71-13 as Article 2, and by adding a new article to read as follows:
"ARTICLE 3
36-71-20.
As used in this article, the term:
(1) 'Educational development impact fees' means development impact fees that are imposed to pay for a share of the cost of additional educational facilities to serve new growth and development in the same area in which such fees are imposed.
(2) 'High growth school system' means a local school system in this state with:
(A) A total increase in system-wide student enrollment of 20 percent or more during the immediately preceding ten-year period; and
(B) Total expenditures of $250 million or more for the construction of new educational facilities as such term is defined in Code Section 20-2-260 during the immediately preceding ten-year period.
36-71-21.
Each local board of education of a high growth school system may by resolution impose, levy, and collect educational development impact fees within any area of such school system with a total increase in student enrollment of 20 percent or more during the immediately preceding ten-year period.
36-71-22.
(a) Before imposing educational development impact fees under this article, a local board of education of a high growth school system shall adopt a public resolution finding that such school system is a high growth school system and shall create an educational development impact fee advisory committee.
(b) The educational development impact fee advisory committee shall be composed in the same manner as provided for development impact fee advisory committees in subsection (b) of Code Section 36-71-5.
(c) The educational development impact fee advisory committee shall serve in an advisory capacity to assist and advise the local board of education with regard to the adoption of an educational development impact fee resolution. Such committee shall be advisory, and no action of such committee shall be considered a necessary prerequisite for action of a local board of education in regard to adoption of a resolution.
(d) In determining the educational development impact fees, the local board of education and the educational development impact fee advisory committee shall consider the projected number of students that will come from different types of developments, such as single-family houses, apartments, condominiums, multifamily housing, age restricted communities, assisted or senior living facilities, and other residential rental properties; provided, however, that in all other matters educational development impact fees shall be calculated as provided by and conform to the requirements of Code Section 36-71-4.
(e) The educational development impact fee advisory committee may also recommend to the local board of education how the educational development impact fees shall be used to offset bonded indebtedness, educational special purpose local option sales taxes, millage rates, and other tax burdens on citizens residing in the area served by the local school system.
(f) The educational development impact fee advisory committee shall provide its calculations, recommendations, and explanations in a report to the local board of education.
(g) The local board of education shall adopt a resolution adopting the educational development impact fee schedule. Such fee schedule shall be sent to each local government in the area served by the local school system.
(h) Each local government in the area served by the local school system shall collect educational development impact fees at the same time and in the same manner as other development impact fees under Article 2 of this chapter. Such local governments are authorized to retain 3 percent of the educational development impact fees collected as reimbursement for their administrative costs and shall forward the remaining amount to the local board of education.
36-71-23.
Educational development impact fees shall be valid for a period of ten years following their adoption by the local board of education. Notwithstanding any other Code section of this article to the contrary, the fees may be extended for additional five-year periods in the manner provided for in Code Section 36-71-22 for the initial adoption, provided that, in at least one of the preceding five years, such local school system experienced an increase of 3 percent or more in the total number of students enrolled system wide. The local board of education may at any time by resolution of such local board of education lower or remove such fees if the growth assumptions change."
SECTION 3.
This Act shall become effective on January 1, 2027, only if an amendment to the state Constitution authorizing educational development impact fees is adopted by the General Assembly and is ratified by the voters at the 2026 general election. Otherwise, this Act shall not become effective and shall stand repealed by operation of law on January 1, 2027.
SECTION 4.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.